Write In

Make no mistake, letters to your Councillor can have a huge impact. So how do you make the most out of your time and effort?

Here are a few of tips:

1. If you want to ensure your letter is read by people at City Hall always keep it respectful and on point. Remember, councillors have precious little time so try to make your point in a single page. Use facts and sources where possible (social media is a fantastic way to find material to back you up). A combative or confrontational email may not get read and (even worse) might even discredit your cause (I usually have someone read my letters before sending them off).

2. Copy the City Clerk (Cathy Saunders - csaunder@london.ca) on your correspondence and ask to have your letter attached to the council or committee agenda. This will ensure that your letter is available to all councillors (and the general public) and goes on the public record when the agenda is published (usually 2 or 3 business days before the next council session).

3. Copy Mayor Matt Brown (mbrown@london.ca) on your email. While your ward councillor technically has responsibility to represent all citizens of London, the mayor is really everyone’s representative so copy Matt to ensure that your voice is heard at the top.

4. Post your letter publicly and let people know so it can be shared. There are a bunch of ways to do this: a public Facebook post on your wall, a post on the Shift Happens Facebook page, your personal blog, Pastebin, Tumblr, Scribd, etc. Or you can just email it to contact@shifthappens.ca and we’ll post it for you on ShiftHappens.ca.

Be a leader and show people that you care enough to speak out and get involved. Your energy may inspire others to speak up too. You would be amazed at how well this works.

Not sure what ward you’re in? You can find a ward map on the City of London’s website.

Below you’ll find email addresses for our mayor and all of our councillors: